Future of talent: a DEI strategy is vital for the new reality
Changing demographics plus an increasingly globalised insurance workforce and customer base require different perspectives. It’s time to embrace a DEI transformation, says a panel of experts, or risk becoming irrelevant.
A talent squeeze could undermine the future of the insurance industry if it is not addressed now, warned a group of diversity, equality and inclusion (DEI) professionals.
The phrase “the war for talent” has been on the lips of senior people across the industry in recent months as competition for certain expertise has increased, while at the same time experienced insurance professionals edge closer to retirement.
For those depending on a wave of next-generation talent there may be a rude awakening. It appears that this next generation, including more diverse talent, is less than excited by the prospect of a career in the insurance industry, particularly as they know very little about what’s on offer.
And anyone thinking they can simply hire talent from an industry competitor may want to rethink this strategy—cannibalising existing talent, especially diverse talent, will only exacerbate the issue in the longer term.
But there is a sustainable solution: DEI. It offers a real opportunity to solve the talent shortage now and for the future, argued a panel of experts during an Intelligent Insurer debate titled “Tactical upgrade: why DEI is essential in today’s war for talent”.
Panellists included Sue Davies, chief human resources officer at Markel; Chelsey Sprong, head of social impact at Beazley; Esther Basra, DEI manager, EMEA, at Chubb; Vic Edwards, head of talent and inclusion at Lockton; Helen Cooke, lead for culture, engagement and DEI at Aspen; and Monica Stancu, senior diversity and inclusion manager at Lloyd’s of London, with Claire Churchard, senior editor of Intelligent Insurer, as moderator.
The new reality
Stancu from Lloyd’s said that while insurance is an attractive career, the industry as a whole “probably hasn’t done a good job in getting people to understand the type of roles and the breadth of opportunities that exist in insurance”. This means a swathe of much-needed people aren’t even considering careers in the profession.
From an early careers perspective, insurance is not considered to be one of the most attractive industries that young people target for their first few roles, she said.
“We know that young people are interested in changing the world—this is how they pick their careers. I don’t think they always make the connection between insurance and social impact.
“Our chief executive officer always says insurance has social impact at the heart of it all, so we need to do a much better job promoting careers in insurance, getting people to understand how attractive this industry can be.”
Stancu highlighted the reality of changing demographics in countries such as the UK and the US. “For example we know from the UK Census that younger people are more likely to identify as LGBT+ compared to older people. We know that the Muslim population is one of the fastest growing sectors in the UK.
“In the US, we have the Hispanic population, which is growing as well. So while for the older generations, DEI was something they thought was the right thing to do, for the younger generations it is the reality. They are from more diverse backgrounds, and they expect organisations to be built to accommodate and welcome them.
“If we don’t adjust to the new reality, we’re not going to be relevant in the future, and we’re not going to be able to attract the talent that exists out there.”
DEI is not a key issue just for first jobbers. From an experienced hires perspective, insurance has operated as a close-knit community, said Stancu. This means that while talent moves around the industry, it can be challenging to get into this ecosystem from outside.
“We should be very mindful about how we draft job descriptions.” Monica Stancu, Lloyd’s of London
One way Lloyd’s is tackling this is to make sure that when jobs are advertised, if the job does not explicitly require insurance experience then it is not included as a requirement in the job description.
“We should be very mindful about how we draft job descriptions because it might mean we are saying no to a lot of people who might be a good fit for us,” she said.
Lockton’s Edwards commented that for job candidates there is now much more choice, whether you’re in the industry already or coming into it.
“Our social responsibilities are becoming increasingly important to candidates” Vic Edwards, Lockton
“We are competing for people who have choices elsewhere, so we’re having to get better at marketing to our people internally, within the industry, and also outside to help to share our culture, and our stances on environmental, social and corporate governance,” she said.
“Our social responsibilities are becoming increasingly important to candidates, but they also want the ability and choice of work so that they can have multiple careers at one organisation. Building out those great talent development programmes, so people feel that they can learn and grow constantly, is very important.”
Value in diversity
There is greater recognition of the value that diverse talent brings to insurance, said Sprong from Beazley.
“One of the big rivals we face now is competition from each other.” Chelsey Sprong, Beazley.
Such recognition has been aided by the nature of the industry to see talent move around within insurance. However, she said, this also creates a challenge.
“One of the big rivals we face now is competition from each other for talent that we already have in our own organisation, which is counterproductive. Hiring diverse talent from within the industry might make your DEI numbers look good, but it doesn’t really improve the diversity of the industry as a whole.”
She added that while some in the industry think it’s more complicated to learn about insurance, perhaps it is more about transition for experienced hires. “This is something the industry could do better,” she said.
“It is time to think more in terms of a five, 10 or even 15-year timeline.” Helen Cooke, Aspen.
Aspen’s Cooke agreed, saying: “We are competing with each other very significantly, particularly if you think about the markets that we operate in, London in particular—we’re all competing in a relatively small pool.”
As more experienced people in insurance, and the wider financial sector, move towards retirement age, she said, the number of very sector-experienced people is getting smaller.
“These are the people everyone will be potentially fighting over. We really do have to start investing in that talent for the future. And if we don’t start doing it now, we’re going to be a bit late.”
While workforce planners are aware of short-term needs and are looking to fill particular roles with a person who’s “ready-made”, Cooke said it is time to think more in terms of a five, 10 or even 15-year timeline, to build early careers with an eye to what that person could contribute in the future.
“We need to play a part in educating people around those biases.” Esther Basra, Chubb.
“That is a real opportunity for DEI—bringing in early careers but investing so that we transform our industry over the next decade,” she said.
Chubb’s Basra agreed that a DEI strategy can support valuable change. She pointed to how important it is in preventing recruitment barriers which, she said, can be a “bias hotspot” that blocks the entrance of underrepresented talent.
“As DEI professionals, we need to play a part in educating people around those biases and make sure we’re removing any barriers that may be in place, and that the business is following best practice. We need to encourage diverse talent into the business and play a part in making sure they stay with us.”
Integrated DEI
Davies from Markel said it was vital to embed DEI through all aspects of the company.
“It is important to keep a very close eye on what we’re doing from a development perspective.” Sue Davies, Markel
This ranges from examining the ways a company tempts people into the industry with intern programmes, apprenticeships, and not just going to traditional risk management programmes, to “broadening the funnel that we’re bringing into the organisation to create that pipeline”, she explained.
